At least 1,000 people formed a human chain in Pakistan-administered Kashmir as rallies were held across Pakistan Sunday to denounce Indian rule in the disputed Himalayan state.

Controversial tweets by a Khmer Rouge tribunal judge have inflamed a damaging public spat between the UN and Cambodia and raised questions over how Twitter is used in the courts.

Pakistan will support every effort to promote reconciliation in Afghanistan, a senior government official said ahead of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani's visit to Qatar Monday to discuss peace efforts.

KIEV/LONDON (Reuters) - Bitterly cold weather sweeping across Europe claimed more victims Sunday, brought widespread disruption to transport services, and left thousands without power with warnings that low temperatures would continue into next week.

PARIS (Reuters) - France's presidential election looks set to become a straight fight between Socialist frontrunner Francois Hollande and incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy after both widened the gap with other contenders over the past month, a poll showed Sunday.

BEIRUT/UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Western and Arab countries responded with outrage Sunday after Russia and China vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution that would have backed an Arab plan urging Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to give up power.

CAIRO (Reuters) - Protesters demanding a swift presidential election and an early handover of power by the army hurled rocks at police guarding the Egyptian Interior Ministry on Sunday and were forced back with volleys of teargas.

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt will prepare Cairo's Torah prison hospital so it can receive ousted President Hosni Mubarak from the military hospital where he is now detained, an Interior Ministry official said on Sunday, an announcement that could help calm protests.

YANGON (Reuters) - A top United Nations envoy warned Myanmar Sunday not to backtrack on its ongoing reform program and said the civilian government should acknowledge its past human rights violations to allow the country to move forward.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Vladimir Putin's opponents vowed on Sunday to press on with demonstrations against his 12-year domination of Russia after tens of thousands attended a march which kept up the momentum of their protest movement.

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Leaders of parties supporting Greece's coalition government say crisis talks for huge new debt deals will continue Monday.

MOSCOW (AP) — The most popular protest song in Moscow today comes from burly men in blue berets, unlikely heroes of a peaceful middle-class movement challenging the strongman rule of Vladimir Putin.

HELSINKI (AP) — A conservative former finance minister was headed toward a clear victory in Finland's presidential election Sunday, according to partial results and a TV election forecast.

   BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — The head of the IMF mission in Romania has criticized politicians and media for accusing him of misconduct for having attended a party held by government officials at a time of harsh austerity measures.

BEIRUT (AP) — The United States proposed an international coalition to support Syria's opposition Sunday after Russia and China blocked a U.N. attempt to end nearly 11 months of bloodshed, raising fears that violence will escalate. Rebel soldiers said force was now the only way to oust President Bashar Assad, while the regime vowed to press its military crackdown.